Rainin’ and Limin’.

It’s rainy season in Trinidad right now. That said, I was correct in my assumption that I would still see more sunshine here than back in my beloved Pacific Northwest. Yesterday was spent adventuring–well, after an extended sleep-in period. Made it to 11:30AM or so, which considering I’m coming from a time zone that’s three hours behind, isn’t so bad. (That technically means I got up at 8:30AM on “vacation” time. Holler.)

We hit up a few sites yesterday, including two Hindu temples, an old military fort, and a shopping mall. The temples were wonderful. The first one we visited was The Temple in the Sea, which is quite literally, a temple in the sea. The inside was being painted and refreshed while we were visiting, so we asked one of the people there to tell us a bit more about the temple, as well as about the Hindu gods (which, as we would learn later, as not false idols nor multiple gods). I was impressed with the usage of color on the statues and pictures all over the temple. Very celebratory and welcoming.

Next up was the giant Hanuman statue just a few minutes away. It was here that we found a Hindu holy man who proceeded to answer pretty much any and all questions about Hinduism we had. What I got out of it was wonderful, as really, I learned that Hinduism does not worship multiple gods. As our holy man put it, Hindus worship different incarnations and representations of the same Supreme Being. The analogy he used was akin to this: If you are a medical student, in one setting, you are a student. When you are with patients, you are a doctor. With your friends, you are just another friend. Yet in all settings, you are you–the same person represented differently. I thought that was great.

Another piece of wisdom he gave us went along these lines: Watch your thoughts, for thoughts turn to words. Watch your words, for words turn to actions. Watch your actions, for actions turn into habit. Watch your habit, because habit becomes character. Watch your character… for character becomes destiny.

There were other adventures along the way yesterday (and today, really). We’ve driven to the tops of hills to see Fort George and overlook the cities. We’ve visited a military and aerospace museum that’s only 13 years old. We’ve eaten roti and other local foods, and chilled at the yacht club and the cineplex and mall.

All in all, however, I’m realizing no matter what I do, it’s exactly where I’m supposed to be.